Burial vault latch



Patented Oct. 25, 1932'- PATENT. ol-*IlclizI Y ELMER W. PIIILLIPPE, OFOTTUMWA, IOWA, AssIGNOR To THE `ROYAL vAuLT` MANU;

FACTURING coiirPAnY,y OF OT'IUMWA, IOWA, A CORPORATION or IOWA BURIAL 'VACUL'JJl LATCH Application mea August 31, 1931. semina. 560,329.

My invention relates to improved means for locking the top portionof a burial vault.

to the base portion.. n v

`.My object is to provide a locking device of this vclass in which the ytop portion may be temporarily locked to the base portion but easily unlocked to release therefrom, and yet may also be permanently locked to the base portion in such a manner that 1t cannot be unlocked.

t A further Objectis to provide an improved means for connecting two lockingvboltstogetherand for operating them simultaneous-` ly, which connecting means is of simple, durable and inexpensiveconstruction and may be readily and easily assembled without tools.

My invention consists in the constructiom arrangement and combination of thevarious parts of the device, wherebythe objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out inl my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which: e

Figure 1 shows a perspective view illustrating a burial vault having myimproved locking device appliedy thereto, they top portion being raised above thebaseportion. Figure 2 shows a vertical, transverse, sectional view of same with the top portion resting upon the flange of the base portionfand thelocking bolts in` locked position, and taken on the line 2--2 of Figure l, n 1 Figure 3 shows a horizontal sectional view through one end of theburial vault withrthe locking bolts in locked position. The dotted lines showvk the locking'bolt handle pushed into the base portion for permanently lockin f v lIiig'urei shows` a similar view with the handle portion pulled outwardly to hold the locking bolts in unlocked position.

Figure 5 shows an enlarged, detail section-y al View through a portionV of the base and the guide for the locking bolts, and illustrating spring rod forconnecting it to the handle; and Y Y Figure 6 shows a sectionaly view onthe line l v from each otherand eachcomprising a part 6 6 of Figure 5.

".50 Referring to the accompanying drawing,

the structure of the locking bolt and the I have used the reference numeral 10k to indi-V with a raised platformll, there being/upright sides 12 between the ange and platform. On therunder surface ofthe flange 10 at the ends thereof I have provided cross braces 13 permanently secured to the flange for reinforcing purposes. Thetop portion of the vault is indicated generally by the numeral 14, andy its lower edge Vportion is of a size substantially larger than that of the top of the platform 11 and the lower edge is bent inwardly 'at 15 `to form alocking Harige and to rest upon the top of the fiange 10.

At each end of the base there is a locking device consisting of a pair of locking bolts and means for operating them. Each locking bolt comprises a body portion 16 Y. substantially in the form of an I-beam, as shown in Figure 6, its outer end ,being inclinedy downwardly `and outwardly and its central portion-being formed with an opening exf the end 19 through the opening in the bolt and then forcingthe rod through the opening until the part 18 is in the opening in the bolt and the part19 is lying against the side of the bolt opposite from theside against which `the bodyrportion" of the spring rod is resting. f f

I have also provided an extensible coil spring 2O on the-rod, one end engaging the casing 17 and theother the locking bolt,to assist in sliding kthe locking bolt outwardly.

At the central portion of the spring rod I form twoy `lateralV extensions spaced apart 21 which extends. laterally from, the main part of the spring rod and converge toward each other. t the ends yot the parts 21 the rod is formed with two parallel portions 22, spaced apart from each other and the center of the rod is formed into a coil 23. Formed in the adjacent end wall 12 of the base portion is an opening 24 of a size to substantially lit the parts 22 of the rod when in their normal position, as shown by solid lines in Figure 3, and when in this position the locking bolts will be in their extended positions, as shown in Figure 3. j

' When it is desired to withdraw the locking bolts and to hold them in unlockedposition, the operator simply grasps the outer end of the handle formed by the parts 22 and 23 and pulls it outwardly until it assumes the position shown in Figure 1l, andwhen in this osition the angular ortions of the s rinfr wire between the parts 21 and 22 will be in overlapping positions and form a handleV portion somewhat larger than the opening 2lthrough which it is extended, so that the locking bolts are yieldingly held in unlocked position. The handle, however, .may be pushed inwardly readily and easily by the operators hand to 'a position for holding the bolts in their locked positions.

In'addtion to this, for permanently holding theA locking bolts in locked position the operator may simply rpush the handle inwardly through the slot 2/1 to a position shown by dotted lines in Figure 3, 'and then move it downwardly below the slot 24, and when in this position the handle cannot be reached for unlocking purposes.

In practical operation it is sometimes desirable that the vault top portion be simply rested upon the base portion without being locked thereto. At other times it is desirable that the top portion be temporarily locked to the base portion, and at other times it is desirable that the top portion be per'- manently locked to the base portion.

With my improvement, and when the handle is'moved to the position shown in Figure 4, then the top is in its unlocked position when resting upon the base portion and the handle is moved to position shown by solid lines in Figure 3. Then when the top portion is placed in position resting upon the base portion, it will be automatically locked thereto and the liange 15 of the top portion will then rest upon the handle, thus keeping the-lower edge of the top portion slightly spaced apart from the ilange 10 of the base portion. When in this position the Ivault may be carried by means of the handles on the top portion and the base will be lirmly locked to it. However, if it is desired to raise the top portion, the operator simply inserts a hook or other device under the top portion and engages the loop 23 of the handle and drawsthe handle outwardly to position shown in Figure 4.

When, however, it is desired to perrnaA` nently lock the top member to the base portion, the operator simply pushes the handles inwardly to the position shown in Figure 3, whereupon the lower edge of the top portion will then move downwardly and rest up on the flange 10, thus preventing any access to the handle so that the locking bolts cannot be moved to open position.

I claim as my invention:

1( A latch device comprising a base having a slot formed therein, two slide bolts mounted in the base, and means for operating the slide bolts comprising a spring wire rod connected at its ends to the slide bolts, a handle at its central portion projected through said slot, the parts of the rod adjacent to the handle being inclined at angles converging toward the handle and designed to engage the sides of the slots in such manner that as the handle is moved through the slot in an outward direction t-he slide bolts will be withdrawn and when the handle is moved inwardly through the slot the slide bolts will be moved outwardly to locking postion. j

2. A latch device comprising a base having a slot formed therein, two slide bolts mounted in the base, and means for operating the slide bolts comprising a spring wire rod connected at its ends to the slide bolts, a handle at its central portion projected through said slot, the parts of the rod adjacent to the handle being inclined at angles converging to- Ward the handle and designed to engage the sides of the slots in such manner that as t-he handle is moved through the slot in an outward direction the slide bolts will be withdrawn and when the handle is moved inwardly through the slot the slide bolts will be moved outwardly to locking position, said handle and spring rod members being also so shaped and constructed that the handle member may be forcedthrough the slot and then laterally, out of line with the slot to provide a non-releasable latch.

3. A latch device comprising a base having a slot formed therein, two slide bolts mounted in the base, and means for operating` the slide bolts comprising a springy wire rodV connected at its ends to the slide bolts, the central portion ofthe spring rod being formed with a handle portion projected through said slot, the portions `oli' the spring rod on opposite sides of the handle being normally'substantially parallel and at right angles to the body of the rod, the portion ofthe rod adjacent the said parallel portions being normally in clined at converging angles from the body of the rod to said parallel portions, the said parallel and converging portions of the rod engaging the sides of the slot, for the purposes stated. Des Moines, Iowa, August 24, 1931.

ELMER W. PHILLIPPE. 

